Posted Thu Jan 13, 2005 9:00 am GMT by StarlightCoast
I have read in this forum and others about when you sit in for a session of Holdem online or not, many people set a goal for themselves. If they win a certain amount, then they will call it quits and leave a winner. This sounds quite reasonable to me, but brings up my question.
What is a reasonable goal? I like to play $1/$2 and do pretty well. In a perfect world I want to sit in with 50 big bets ($100), but more often than not it's usually 25 big bets or even 12.5 because my bankroll does not support $1/$2, but it's what I like and am happiest at. Be that as it may if I sit with say 25 big bets ($50) what is a reasonable goal? Would it be double my buy-in? Once I have $50 at the table should I call call it quits. What if I sat in with $100? Once I have $200 at the table I will quit. Would this be reasonable or am I setting the goal too high?
Secondly, once I figure my goal should that be for the session or the entire day? If I sit in with $50 and my goal is to win $50 and I do so, then in a couple or few hours should I hit the tables again or should I be happy with the days profits and resume the next day.
Obviously I don't want to leave if I could win more but I don't want to get greedy and give all the profits back either because of a downswing. All opinions eagerly anticipated and greatly appreciated.
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Posted Thu Jan 13, 2005 1:20 pm GMT by suitedaces84
Personally I hate the idea of goals. Many times a goal cannot be reached because of bad cards, this leads to frustration, and dare I say the occasional tilt. I forget who mentioned this (in another thread on here), but they said leave when they reach a low ex. you lose $25 at a 1/2 table. It goes something like this: you sit down with $50, if you make it up to $75 your low goes up to $50, so if you get back down to $50 you leave. I'd say setting goals is trouble. When it's your day keep playing, when it's not get out before too much damage is done.
Posted Fri Jan 14, 2005 5:00 pm GMT by skyfire
I agree with suitedaces84 that setting a monetary goal every session would be difficult because there will be times when the cards run cold and you won't hit that goal and the more you try, the more you'll lose. I think a better idea would be set a time limit. I read an interview with Phil Ivey where the minimum time he sits at a table is 5 or 6 hours. After that time is up, if he loses, he loses. If not, good. He walks away with a profit on the day. If he's up after six hours he makes an executive decision on whether to stick around and play a little more based on his analysis of the players and the game. I'm not saying sit for 5+ hours instead of setting a monetary limit. But I think it's a more realistic goal than to say "I will leave after I double my stack after every session."
I also think by setting a time limit goal, it forces you to play tighter, save more bets and be more patient because you won't be thinking of how much you need to make but rather how long you have to play to stay alive. I try to play 2 or 3 hours a session and if I lose, I lose but usually it's never my whole buy-in. At a .50/1 NL table, I buy-in for $40 and I usually don't have to buy-in again for the time I play. When I have to leave down, I think of it as paying for entertainment and poker education. But when the cards are good, I feel great when I leave the table after taking down some big pots...Then again, who doesn't?
Posted Fri Jan 14, 2005 6:27 pm GMT by YosemiteMark
Here's another voice saying that time goals are better than money goals. I feel session-to-session variance in poker is too high to be able to make good use of money goals. Either you'll have a luckier than normal session + end up quiting too early in a good situation, or you'll have an unluckier than normal session + drive yourself crazy trying to reach your goal....
Posted Mon Jan 17, 2005 9:59 pm GMT by Nipsy
Take a tip from Bobby Baldwin's section of Super/System: play as long as you feel good. Stay at the table as long as your head is clear, the table is friendly, and you are making correct decisions. If you start getting frustrated with the cards, yourself, or the loudmouth across the table, get out. If the table of easygoing tourists you sat down with at 10 pm has turned into a ring of somber rounders by 3 am, get out. Don't be afraid to walk away from the table during a losing session. By the same token, if you've just played 12 hours straight, tripled your bankroll, and still feel as fresh as a daisy, by all means, keep playing.
Posted Tue Jan 18, 2005 1:57 am GMT by StarlightCoast
Well as far as the stop loss order goes i am taking the advice of Howard Lederer (my poker idol) which I found by way of his sister Annie Duke.
I was checking out websites of various poker pros wand when I checked out Annie Dukes, she had an article that said when she first started that her brother (Howard Lederer) told her never to lose more than 30 big bets in a game. Here is the article for anyone who would like to read it.
http://www.annieduke.com/articles.php?subaction=showfull&id=1071805420&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&
The way I look at it, if the advice comes from Howard Lederer, its got to be good./url
Posted Thu Jan 20, 2005 4:25 pm GMT by Bleakill
interesting...i guess 30 bets sound reasonable.
Posted Mon Jan 24, 2005 10:34 pm GMT by pokerislife
In limits it is really impossible to set any short term goals like that for yourself. You need to set long term goals. Your bb/hour only starts to become stable after playing around 10k hands. Keep this in mind. Most of the shortterm is luck unless you happened to find a complete and total chump. You want to stay at the table when the opposition is easy to milk, and can stay if it is not too easy but you think you can beat in the long run. Besides playing shorthanded vs a terrible player though, dont expect any sort of goal, just store your hand histories and look put them into a program like pokertracker and have it calculate your bb/hour, watch over months to see improvement. Anything else people tell you about your sesssion goals is worthless.
Posted Tue Jan 25, 2005 2:05 am GMT by woodendart
are to always play solid hand and more importantly not to go on a tilt. But rather learn as much as I can for that session and to make sure I have money for another one tomorrow.
Posted Tue Feb 15, 2005 3:30 pm GMT by Ensano
as for monetary goals are ok.. if you really want to play that way.. as a rule of thumb i never lose more than 30 big bets at one table.. i'm a solid player and if in an hour i manage to lose 30 big bets!!! i know i'm the fish at that table.. so i find a smaller pond for me.. as for winning.. or even losin.. i usually asses my situation every time i have to pay the big blind.. by time it comes around to me i have a good feel for the table.. if it's a good table.. i do another round.. if the table makes you feel like you somhow wondered onto a WTP table.. then i don't post and again i'm out to find a better pond.. i don't stop just because of any specific amount i lose or win.. you're not allowing yourself to take full advantage of a weak table... like the previous posts pointed out.. if you're feeling good and on your game.. why not stay and play in a good game.. even if you're already up to your "cap".. you can double that is you keep playing..
Posted Mon Feb 21, 2005 10:03 am GMT by titans4ever
Cash tables it is hard to set any type of goal because you don't know who your playing against and how deep are there pockes.
In a tourny you can set a goal of winner, top 5, just in the money, etc. and that can help you decide now important it is to be aggressive. Half way into the tourney do you need to be the chip leader, average stack or short stacked to reach your goals.
I tend to set the goal of top 5 and that will lead me to be aggressive about half way through the tourny and tight for the first hour or so when you get those all in every other hand people off the table. I think I have enough skill to win enough hands to climb from short stacked to close to the chip leader without going all in and getting the early jump on everyone else right away.
Posted Mon May 30, 2005 8:12 am GMT by Jackal
Most people play for a long time when they are losing and play a short session when they are ahead. When in fact, they should do exactly the opposite. Why quit when you are on a winning streak?
The article mentioned earlier is also very helpfull.
Posted Tue May 31, 2005 4:16 am GMT by xDiamond_CutteRx
Daily goals are stupid, because Poker is a game of long-run results. A bad hand or bad day doesn't make a difference for a serious player because he knows he will be a winner in the long run with decent skills. As long as the game is good, you should keep playing. If the game is bad, you stop and find another. Very simple. 1-2 big bets an hour is all you're striving for.
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